Park Do-won, "The Good"
Played By: Jung Woo-sung
- Anti-Hero: Arguably, as he actually kills the most people during the course of the film and does not display regret or remorse over it. However, he does abide by a personal Code of Honor and could be considered more the
Lawful Neutral type. - Beware the Quiet Ones: In the extended ending, Do-won interrogates a mob about the fleeing Tae-goo, and angrily kills everyone except the leader without changing his expression or tone of voice. This shows that when anything is out of his hands, Do-won is downright scary.
- Bounty Hunter: Turns in criminals to the police for a living.
- Death by Adaptation: In the International cut, he is shot down in the three-way standoff. In the Korean version, like Blondie, he survives.
- Enemy Mine: Briefly forms an alliance with Tae-goo after he captures him.
- Horseback Heroism: First to save Man-gil from torture by Chang-yi, then to help Tae-goo evade everyone on his race through the desert.
- One-Man Army: Takes on a battalion of Japanese cavalrymen, part of the most feared army in Asia, and makes them look like amateurs.
- Satellite Character: Do-won is mostly included in the film to be a foil to Tae-goo and to fulfill the "good" part of the The Good, the Bad, and the Evil equation.
- The Quiet One
- The Stoic: He rarely says much and always keeps himself composed. Tae-goo admits that Do-won scares him more than Chang-yi does.
- Tranquil Fury: "I'll ask you one last time... where's Yoon Tae-goo?"
- The Unreveal: He nearly reveals to Tae-goo - and the audience - what he'd do if he found the gold, but Tae-goo falls asleep before he can reveal anything.
Park Chang-yi, "The Bad"
Played By: Lee Byung Hun
- Adaptational Heroism: He's a substantially more sympathetic character than Angel Eyes was in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
- Agent Peacock: Chang-yi is a deadly Pretty Boy hitman and bandit who manages to be a Bulletproof Fashion Plate in the deserts of Manchuria. He makes it through an epic horseback battle-slash-chase scene that kills dozens of Mooks and doesn't even smudge his Guyliner. And his Shirtless Scene shows that underneath the anachronistic stylish outfit, he's ripped.
- Always Second Best: He really doesn't like it when anyone correctly states that Tae-goo is better than him.
- Anti-Villain: While he displays many of the stereotypical traits of a villain (dressing in black, killing his employer, hijacking a train, etc.), his motives for his actions throughout the film end up being more complex than they first appear.
- Badass in a Nice Suit
- Berserk Button: Mentioning Tae-goo, the man who took his finger. He even shoots two of his subordinates over this.
- Big Bad: At first.
- Bulletproof Fashion Plate: Rarely if ever gets dishevelled in action.
- Composite Character: He's the film's version of Angel Eyes, but his stalking of Tae-goo to avenge a mutilation is more in line with the one-armed bounty hunter, Elam.
- Even Evil Has Standards: He scoffs at Koreans who are loyal to Japan.
- Psycho for Hire: Causes an almost complete massacre on the train at the beginning of the film, and kills his employer to go after the treasure map himself.
- The Stoic: A villainous version. Except for the Slasher Smile he sports.
- Talk to the Fist: When his client brags about killing him, he just drives a knife into the back of the man's neck.
- White Shirt of Death: Just look at his page image!
Yoon Tae-goo, "The Weird"
Played By: Song Kang-ho
- Action Survivor: Is practically a cockroach in almost any combat situation, until it is revealed that he is in fact a Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass.
- Affably Evil: He's friendly, chatty and comes off as relatively harmless... at first.
- Always Someone Better: Chang-yi's view towards him.
- Badass Adorable: Chubby-cheeked, energetic, likeable, and possibly the deadliest criminal in all of Korea.
- Badass Biker: The man is a mean motorcyclist.
- Beware the Silly Ones: He is far from the buffoon he appears to be.
- Cool Shades: He sometimes wears little round sunglasses.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He can be a legitimate idiot at times, but he's a powerhouse.
- Death by Adaptation: In the International version, he is shot down in the final standoff. In the Korean version, like Tuco, he survives.
- Enemy Mine: His capture by Do-won forces them to briefly team up against Chang-yi.
- Giggling Villain: He has quite a distinctive high-pitched laugh.
- Greater-Scope Villain: Was once known as the "Finger Chopper".
- Guns Akimbo: On the train in the beginning of the film. An early sign that he is more than he appears to be.
- Handwraps of Awesome: Combined with fingerless gloves.
- Hat Damage: Chang-yi shoots his aviator cap off his head when he tries to avoid confrontation.
- Honor Among Thieves: Tae-goo believes that even thieves have rules, which is why he complains about Chang-yi breaking them.
- I Just Shot Marvin in the Face: At the beginning of the film, he kills most of the people in the train car he's robbing by accident. This was because Chang-yi pulled the emergency brake and sent him tumbling headlong across the car with his fingers still on the triggers of his Walther pistols.
- Improvised Armor: Wears a diving helmet in the Ghost Market fight, and, in the Korean version, survives the final shootout by sliding a thick sheet of metal under his vest.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He does have some good in him. In his establishing scene, he urges the last surviving Japanese person in the car he raided to escape, out of what appears to be real concern for her safety, and all while robbing the dead ones blind.
- Laughably Evil: Arguably intentional on his part; he enforces being a clumsy, jokey oaf so no one would expect him to be an actual threat.
- Messy Hair: He has a thick mop of frizzy hair when he's not wearing a hat.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: A classic example.
- Pet the Dog: Saves some Japanese children from spies in an opium den, as well as caring for his "granny" and his friend Man-gil.
- Rasputinian Death / Disney Death : Depending on which ending you're watching. In the International version, he takes about twelve bullets before going down. In the Korean version he gets back up again and reveals that he hid a thick metal sheet under his shirt.
- Retired Monster: Tae-goo was once known as a ruthless gangster who cut off his enemies' fingers.
- Rummage Sale Reject: His outfit is an eclectic mishmash of different bits of clothing, emphasising his designation as "The Weird".
- Sad Clown: Song Kang-ho notes that Tae-goo, underneath all his goofiness, is the most miserable of the three, and indeed he actually shows himself to be a bit of a pessimist.
- Scarf of Asskicking: Sports one at the end of the film.
- Stock Scream: In the trailer only, Tae-goo is given a Wilhelm scream when thrown off his motorbike by Do-won.
- Verbal Tic: He has one in the English subtitles, man.
- Villain Protagonist: The story more or less revolves around him. Kim Ji-woon and Song Kang-ho went into this film knowing that it was going to be Tae-goo's movie.
Man-gil
Played by: Ryu Seung-su
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Seems like a confused idiot who sold a copy of the map without Tae-goo's knowledge. The truth is, he sold a map with the treasure location drawn in the wrong place to lead Byung-choon's gang in the wrong direction.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Is last seen being held in Tae-goo's arms, critically injured. He's never seen again after that.
- Distressed Dude: The Ghost Market set piece revolves around Do-won and Tae-goo trying to rescue him.
- Fingore: As part of his Cold-Blooded Torture, Chang-yi tries to saw his finger off. However, the knife is too blunt and it only makes a deep cut in Man-gil's finger.
- Number Two: Tae-goo's friend and confidant.
- Say My Name: Screams, "Tae-goo!" repeatedly as Chang-yi is torturing him.
- Sacrificial Lion: We never see him again after Do-won and Tae-goo save him, implying that he died of his injuries
- What a Drag: Tae-goo finds him being dragged along the street by a horse.
